Alexander dingwall



v(No Modell) 2 Sheenasheen 1`. DINGWALL. CAR GUPLING Patented May 9,189s.

UAR GOUPLING.

.5mm/dot W/HTO/Lmm Y I Patented May 9, 1893.

Unirse @rares PATENT ritten@ ALEXANDER DINGWALL, OF MONTREAL, CANADA.

CAR-COUPLING.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 497,121, dated May 9,1893.

Application tiled September 22,1892. Serial No. 446,640. (No model.)

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, ALEXANDER DINGWALL, of the city of Montreahin thedistrict of Montreal and Province `of Quebec, Canada, have inventedcertain new and useful Improvements in Car-Couplers; and I do herebydeclare that the followingis a full, clear, and exact description of thesame.

This coupler is of the arrow-head character and distinguished by aconstruction which calls for a rotary head and a flexible holder on eachdraw bar which may or may not include the usual head for link and pinpurposes. l

For full comprehension however of the invention, reference must be hadto the annexed drawings, forming a part of this specification in whichlike symbols indicate corresponding parts and wherein-- Figure lis aplan showing a coupling effected and the parts in their drawingpositions the top of a car and connections for operating the couplerbeing shown in part on the one hand and thelike parts omitted on theother. Fig. 2 is a similar View to Fig. l of the same parts only withthe heads and holders in uncoupled position, the dotted lines showingthem apart, and Fig. 8 a face View of the coupler and end of the carwith parts in readiness for coupling, and Fig. 4 a detail side view,partly broken away, of apparatus for uncoupling from the top of a car.

I have shown my invention in combination With the usual draw head A onthe draw bar A for link and pin coupling but it will be readily seenthat other forms ot' central pivotal drawbars could be used.

On one side of a central drawbar, such as A', a bar B with arrow-shapedhead B is journaled near its forward end and at its rear end in bracketbearings C C projecting from the side of the drawbar A', while on itsopposite side a pair of gates D D are vertically pivoted at one side orilatwise in and between upper and lower arms E E projecting from the topand bottom of the drawbar A', the pivotal axes, in the form ofspinrdleends d d, of the gates being located toward the inner and outer ends ofthe arms E E and projecting through same. The gates are of such a widththat, when their free ends or sides are impelled toward each other by abow spring of the head B of the bar B provides two shoulders b b whichwhen the bar ils held in its normal position by the spring B2 encirclingthe bar B and having its ends connected respectively with it and thebracket C are adapted to bear on the free ends of the gates D D afterthe head has been passed through them and the draft is on. In order touncouple it is necessary to rotate the bar B until its top and bottomplain sides are parallel with the free sides or edges of the gates D Dof the opposite coupler, the rotation of the bar serving to spreadthegates apart and to allow of this being done from the top or eitherside of the cars the following inechanism is used: Y

On each of the upper projecting spindle ends d CZ of the gates D D aremounted horizontal crank disks D D2 connected by pins 0l d2 withtheiinner ends of horizontal sliding rods F F (carried in suitable eyesff along the face of the car body) and the disk D2 being furtherconnected by the same pin d2 with the lower end of a lever G pivoted atg to the face of the car. The upper end of this lever is connectedthrough rod and chain connections G with the free projecting end of aspring bar H on top of the car adapted` to engage the ratchetedgedportion H of a grooved segment H2 axially mounted over the spring barand provided with a suitable handle h, a chain h' being taken from suchsegment down to and partially around the bar B so that when pulled uponit will rotate the bar the required distance as before mentioned. Thesliding rods F F act in conjunction with other rods F2 F3 and chainconnections f2 f3 also leading to and connected with the bar B wherebyupon either of the4 rods F2 F3 being drawn uponit will rotate the bar Band as it is necessary to hold it in its reversed position on one caruntil the same action has been performed on the other, eyes or rings j jare attached to the ends of the rods F2 F3 so that when either is drawnout the required distance the eye can be slipped over the projecting endof the corresponding rod F or F and thereby held until IOO by thewithdrawal of the heads from the gates D D these latter are impelledtogether by the spring E and the rods through their connection with thedisks D D2 drawn inward with the result that the rod connection F2 or F3is freed and the bar B allowed to resume its normal position ready forcoupling. In uncoupling from the top of the cars, the segment I-I2 onthe first car after being operated to rotate the head of such car isheld in position by a pin h2 passed through an eye h3 in the disk andbearing against the rear of the standards in which such segment ismounted, this being necessitated because the spring bar II of this caris not free to engage the segment until the head of the second car isrotated which will have the effect of spreading the gates of the firstcar and so operating its lever G to free the spring bar and allow it toengage the segment. After the rotator head of the second car is rotatedby operating its segment (the spring bar of which is free to act) thepin h2 is removed from the segment of the rst car and upon the headsbeing withdrawn from the holders the closing of the gates will throughthe connections G disengage the spring bars of each car from thesegments and allow the rotatory heads to resume their normal positionfor coupling.

It will be noticed that the depth of the gates D D (forming what I termthe holders) is such as to insure the automatic coupling of the heads ofcars at different levels and while I have shown special means wherebyuncoupling can be effectedin part automatically from the top or sides ofthe car it will be quite apparent that other devices such as a chainattached to the bar B and carried over a pulley on the front of the carand provided with a ring to be held on a hook temporarily would sufce inmany cases.

What I claim is as follows:

l. In a car coupler, the combination of two drawbars each of whichcarries on opposite sides a coupling head and a holder for a like head;each of the said heads being rotatory, of arrow-head form and havinglike butting shoulders on two sides thereof; and each of the saidholders beingin the form of two vertically pivoted gates, extendingabove. and below the level of said heads and normally held with ayielding resistance at approximately right angles to each other to formarecess for the reception of the coupling head, the free ends of suchgates being adapted to engage the butting shoulders of said head wheninserted in the holder, and the said head upon its rotation acting tofree itself from said gates as set forth.

2. In a car coupler, the combination with the car body and a draw-barcarrying on opposite sides a rotatory coupling head and a holder in theform of vertically pivoted gates with means for holding them closed, ofa pivoted segment mounted on the top of the car` body and having itsedge partially grooved and ratchet-toothed, a spring toothed bar adaptedto engage said ratchet teeth, a flexible connection between said segmentand the rotatory bar, a lever pivoted on the front of the car body,crank connection between one end of such lever and oneof said holdergates, connections between the other end of said lever and said springbar, and means for temporarily locking said segment as set forth.

3. In a car coupler, the combination with the car body and a drawbarcarrying on opposite sides a rotatory coupling head and a holder in theform of vertically pivoted gates with means for holding them closed, ofan upperand lowerpairof sliding rods carried horizontally on the frontof the car body, crank connections between the inner ends of said lowerrods and the said gates, a iiexible connection between the inner ends ofsaid upper rods and the rotatory bar and means for drawing outward andeffecting a slipping connection of the outer ends of said upper rodswith the outwardly projected outer ends of the lower rods whereby uponan inward movement of these latter such upper rods will be released asset forth, and means for holding them closed, as set forth.

Montreal, September 14e, 1892.

ALEXANDER DINGWALL.

In presence of- FRED. J. SEARS, WILL. P. MCFEAT.

